I have gone to dead ahead for about 20 tattoos and I have had a great experience every time! Brandon always understands what I am vaguely describing for my tattoo! read more

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After following the shop and artists for over a year, we decided to make the 6 hour drive to come get tattoos. Alena and Dior were so sweet and we really enjoyed our experience. We will absolutely be back to get more tattoos. read more

Dead Ahead Tattoo - Alena's station - Tattoo Near Me - Nashville, Tennessee

I've been getting tattoo'd here for a few years now from a couple different tattoo artists. Incredible work, professional staff, and just an overall great place to go with for your tattoos. read more

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I got tattooed by Ryan McDonald and loooove the piece so much. He absolutely killed it. It was my first tattoo done by him and I am so pleased! Would love to go back to this shop. read more

Dead Ahead Tattoo - finished and wrapped in saniderm - Tattoo Near Me - Nashville, Tennessee

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Ryan's flamboyant and bright cheap tattoo ink, particularly his red ink caused me to have a allergic reaction. I'm not a fan of him as a person either. This shop is dishonest and will find any reason to keep your deposit. read more

Amazing artists, great atmosphere and simply good people. Matt has completed two incredible pieces and is currently working on a full back piece. His line work is impeccable and his attention to detail is astounding. I won't spoil the in process back piece, but here are the two he completed for me last year. Each artist has their own style, and everyone at Dead Ahead creates the most incredible work I've seen. read more

Dead Ahead Tattoo - Baby dragon - Tattoo Near Me - Nashville, Tennessee

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I went through the long process of setting an appointment for noon after it took time for them to get back to me to confirm and agree I showed up 10 minutes before my time. They did not open doors til 1215 and was told that I had to reschedule as Artist had to cancel last minute. I wasted my time driving there No notice Dont waste your time making appointments. Go somewhere. Else which is what I am doing. Very disappointed read more

Ive been visiting this shop for at least 5 years and had gotten over 10+ pieces between Jonny, Ryan, Alena, and Nova. They all specialize in different styles. I haven't experienced any scheduling mishap with any of them. They are all professional and are perfectionists when it comes to their crafts. No regrets or complaints with any of the pieces I had received from these artists. Jonny did a few of my coverups with Japanese style tattoos. He did such a great job. They are probably about 5-6 yrs old and still holding up well. I got one of Nova's flash designs during her apprenticeship. I couldn't resist the wonky eyes animals she drew. I always have an amazing time with Alena. She is one of the kindest human I've met. Her art style is fun and girly. I always feel happy looking at the pieces she did. Time flies during my visits with Alena! The shows Ryan put on the tv during my appointments are some of the funniest. Great distraction while getting my legs blasted for hours (so worth it). His works are amazing. They are always getting compliments wherever I go. The pieces are super bold in color. None of them ever need to get a touch up. Every time I request something, Ryan delivers above and beyond. read more

Never ever coming here. Me and my friends came here for my birthday weekend and we each got a different tattoo by the same person, his name is John. I showed him what I wanted and also told him I did not want the flower to be shaded in color. While he was doing the tattoo I saw him shading the flower so I stopped him. Than he shaded it in with a nude color. When he finished he said don't worry it looks like it has color but it's just the blood. Of course he lied to me, weeks later I look at the tattoo and he shaded it in with color. My friends tattoo also came out bad, but I rather them write the review with there experience. Also the lines on my tattoo are not full . I tried going to a tattoo artist and they cannot fix the tattoo so I have to live with this tattoo basically. ‍ smh. read more

Dead Ahead Tattoo - Tattoo Near Me - Nashville, Tennessee

Dead Ahead Tattoo is fantastic! I've had work done by John Freyvogel, which I am really happy with, but I tell everyone to check out Dead Ahead! Everyone is super chill and the shop is very clean. I look forward to many more sessions! read more

Dead Ahead Tattoo - Tattoo Near Me - Nashville, Tennessee

I got my tattoo at dead ahead almost exactly a year ago. Unfortunately, I am not super happy with how it turned out. I felt like it was a really simple tattoo but it has several imperfections which bother me a lot. It's also on my wrist, so I can constantly see these imperfections. I chose dead ahead because one of my friends had a nice, simple, tattoo done here that looks great and the store has great reviews, but I would say I am definitely generally disappointed with my resul read more

Dead Ahead Tattoo - Tattoo Near Me - Nashville, Tennessee

Actually got tatted at this shop while I was on vacation in Nashville from Colorado where I live. The girl at the front desk was incredibly nice and very helpful. She was able to get me scheduled short notice with Mitch Hoggard. Mitch was able to take my original idea and make it better. ALWAYS TRUST YOUR ARTIST! The piece turned out great. Overall a great experience! Will definitely return if I ever end up back in Nashville. read more

Dead Ahead Tattoo - Tattoo Near Me - Nashville, Tennessee

Showed up precisely on time for a scheduled tattoo consult. Was greeted and subsequently ignored for 30 minutes. Front desk person who greeted me was on the phone when I left. 10 minutes after I left, tattoo artist emails me saying the front desk person only just now alerted him to my presence, and apparently told him I'd left to move my car...?? I responded to this email and never heard back. Messaged the shop on social media and haven't heard a thing. Incredibly disappointed as I'd been looking forward to the appointment for weeks and now will have to schedule elsewhere. If you're a potential new customer, just don't bother with this place as they clearly don't care about their customers. read more

My wife and I found this shop by luck while on vacation from NY. We were fortunate to get Matt as our artist for neck tattoos that we've been wanting for some time. All of the artist here are very kind and talented people. Matt quickly came up with our designs and really just knocked it out of the park with placement and execution. I highly recommend this shop and I can't wait to come back for another tattoo. The pricing is pretty standard for a high quality artist and Matt seemed to work slightly faster than previous artists I've worked with. I would ignore any negative review that may be on here and not hesitate to choose Dead Ahead tattoo as a place to go for high quality traditional tattoos. read more

Dead Ahead Tattoo - Tattoo Near Me - Nashville, Tennessee

I'm sure that Dead Ahead tattoo has many reputable artists and people that have only positive feedback to leave with, I really wish that I could have been another fan of this shop, but my experience was the complete opposite. I wanted a lighthouse with a cancer ribbon wrapped around it on my shoulder reworked and to add a portrait of my mother next to the lighthouse. I wanted this tattoo to be in her memory, since I'm currently studying Nursing and plan on going to UT next year to study Oncology. This tattoo was supposed to give me strength and motivation to continue on, and it's given me the opposite. I now feel insecure even showing this tattoo in public, and denial that it's even there, so I have to find a new artist. I unfortunately wouldn't suggest getting tatted by John Freyvogel because when I wasn't happy, I got more excuses than accountability on his part. When I wasn't happy with one of our sessions and pointed out her eyes looked weird, he said "Oh it's how your shoulder is just angled, it's fine!" Than when I mentioned getting a new artist in our last session, he told me "Well it's an unfinished tattoo.." When in reality, the portrait was finished and we were working on the lighthouse in this session. Every other staff seemed very friendly and lovely, but I would never recommend this artist lo read more

Dead Ahead Tattoo - Tattoo Near Me - Nashville, Tennessee

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I'll be coming back as much as they will let me! The only negative thing about this place is how booked they are, BUT so worth the wait. read more

Dead Ahead Tattoo - Thanks Val, in love with it - Tattoo Near Me - Nashville, Tennessee

Jacob did an amazing job on a watercolor memorial piece. I will be stopping in to see him again for another when I'm back in town. There was a lot of amazing artwork displayed in the shop from all the artist. Emily was awesome at the front desk trying to work me in. Very professional!!! read more

Dead Ahead Tattoo - Tattoo Near Me - Nashville, Tennessee

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Dead ahead tattoo is a really good shop and they really do care about their clients, they actually talk with you and make you feel Comfortable and like you are at home. Abel does really good black and grey work and he's work with a lot of military people so if you're looking for someone that can relate he defiantly can, the owner Brandon is really nice and will make sure the customers are satisfied so I would defiantly recommend this place. read more

Great Tattoo Shop! My artist is Abel Deida, he is super professional and his work is superb!!! All the artists at the shop are very talented and there is a great atmosphere at the shop. read more

This place is the only shop I'll get a tattoo from. I have 10 tatts from Ryan, another 5 from Jacob. I have plans to see Val and Abel soon. I see nothing but stellar work from this shop, no matter what style you're looking for. Emily is great up front and can lead you to the artist that will compliment your design. read more

Did a walk in during Fourth of July weekend. One of the tattoo artists looked at a reference I sent them and a picture that was going to be of my wife and daughter. Brice Hamm, the artist, told me he could do it and said he was going to make sure he talked to other artists to see if it could be done over the the next two days. He never called, went to a bbq for some kid and never followed up to do my tattoo. I had to call back the shop and get a response to see what was going on. He never talked to any other artists. I left a note with another employee the day before for him to call me and he never did. I was planning to spend over $800 on my tattoo but I guess Brice Hamm has another agenda besides doing a tattoo or can't just say no. read more

I have never been treated the way these people treated me. If I could give zero starts I would. First off, they rescheduled my appointment TWICE with bullshit excuses. I let it go and was nice about it. I called 30 MINUTES before my appointment today just to make sure it was today and not next weekend. Keep in mind.. I took initiative to call and make sure that my appointment was today and not next week because I do not "no-show" to any of my appointments. I would call to reschedule, but given that I scheduled these appointments on days I knew I was going to be available, there's no reason for me not to show up. ANYWAYS.The girl on the phone said it was today at 1. I show up to my appointment and THE SAME GIRL says to me that I've no called/no showed several times and so Brice booked someone else lol. So if you knew this information when I called 30 minutes ago, why was this not a discussion on the phone? Inconsiderate and unprofessional. I told her that was shit because I've been to all of my sessions. I told her YOU guys have rescheduled me twice so when was this no show bs? She wanted me to speak with my artist BRICE. He tells me that he showed up on Jan 8th (the first r/s appt) and that I didn't show. I was like your front desk CALLED me the week before stating that you had something come up and needed to r/s me. Then he tried to turn it on me and blame me! Why would you tell your front desk person to contact me and tell me to r/s but really you're in the shop on Jan 8? Sounds like a game? Who's playing? We had our first session in September for a forearm tattoo, and it's February. Smh I don't think he is experienced in tattooing darker skinned people. BUT instead of telling me that, he decided to make excuses, and delay the tattoo sessions. If he didn't have much experience with darker skinned people, he could've just said that and I would've found someone who was comfortable and experienced with tattooing darker skinned people with no issues. Dead ahead tattoo you have really disappointed me. I am left with an unfinished tattoo that looks faded as if I had it for over 10 years, but it hasn't even been six months. I am also disappointed in Brice who realized that I did not "no-show" my appointment but still did not offer to provide services to me during my SCHEDULED appointment. he decided to tattoo another man he decided to double book, "assuming" that I was going to "no-show" which I've never done. Smh. I should've known when I don't see any black people in white establishments or on their page, it is probably not the place to be for me. Anyone who has dark skin, go somewhere else.. PLEASE. Trust me when I say this is definitely not the place.!! read more

Dead ahead Tattoo was a great experience! The Bachelorette party Grace was referring to was my sister in laws. We walked in and no one was in the shop and they not only were nice enough to take all 7 of us, but they were creative with what we wanted. Walk ins work as a first come first serve basis when no one was here it made sense that we were taken care of accordingly. No only did Grace and her boyfriend make a scene, as it was both of their first time getting tattoos they didn't understand the walk in policy. Works the same way as a nail salon, restaurant.... need I say more. Lastly, they gave all the employees a hard time and they remained professional throughout the entire situation. From someone who is out of town and has multiple tattoos I would recommend this shop to anyone!! read more

Had a great experience with Brice today. My friend and I went it for cherry blossoms. He did a beautiful job and was so nice and professional. The whole studio is really clean and open. We called last minute and tried to get an appointment. The woman on the phone called one of the artist to squeeze us in. They we're so kind do go out of their way. Just a really wonderful experience all around. read more

Great shop with great atmosphere and great people working there. If your looking for a place that actually takes time and works with you to make sure your getting what you want , this is the place. Brandon did some work on my arm and it turned out amazing. All around great place and my go to shop from now on. read more

Great place to get a tattoo I got a big realistic tiger on the upper part of my arm the artist I had witch was Abel is great he is a great artist and is very patient and is very kind to his customers I'll probably go to him again. very good artist and very talented. Keep up the good work Abel. read more

I have never been treated the way these people treated me. If I could give zero starts I would. First off, they rescheduled my appointment TWICE with bullshit excuses. I let it go and was nice about it. I called 30 MINUTES before my appointment today just to make sure it was today and not next weekend. Keep in mind.. I took initiative to call and make sure that my appointment was today and not next week because I do not "no-show" to any of my appointments. I would call to reschedule, but given that I scheduled these appointments on days I knew I was going to be available, there's no reason for me not to show up. ANYWAYS.The girl on the phone said it was today at 1. I show up to my appointment and THE SAME GIRL says to me that I've no called/no showed several times and so Brice booked someone else lol. So if you knew this information when I called 30 minutes ago, why was this not a discussion on the phone? Inconsiderate and unprofessional. I told her that was shit because I've been to all of my sessions. I told her YOU guys have rescheduled me twice so when was this no show bs? She wanted me to speak with my artist BRICE. He tells me that he showed up on Jan 8th (the first r/s appt) and that I didn't show. I was like your front desk CALLED me the week before stating that you had something come up and needed to r/s me. Then he tried to turn it on me and blame me! Why would you tell your front desk person to contact me and tell me to r/s but really you're in the shop on Jan 8? Sounds like a game? Who's playing? We had our first session in September for a forearm tattoo, and it's February. Smh I don't think he is experienced in tattooing darker skinned people. BUT instead of telling me that, he decided to make excuses, and delay the tattoo sessions. If he didn't have much experience with darker skinned people, he could've just said that and I would've found someone who was comfortable and experienced with tattooing darker skinned people with no issues. Dead ahead tattoo you have really disappointed me. I am left with an unfinished tattoo that looks faded as if I had it for over 10 years, but it hasn't even been six months. I am also disappointed in Brice who realized that I did not "no-show" my appointment but still did not offer to provide services to me during my SCHEDULED appointment. he decided to tattoo another man he decided to double book, "assuming" that I was going to "no-show" which I've never done. Smh. I should've known when I don't see any black people in white establishments or on their page, it is probably not the place to be for me. Anyone who has dark skin, go somewhere else.. PLEASE. Trust me when I say this is definitely not the place. read more

Awesome shop. Busy, but they do try to accommodate walk ins. All the artists that I've been lucky enough to meet and later have work done have been AMAZING! Try them out or enjoy your overpriced ink from elsewhere. read more

This was my daughter's first tattoo and Dead Ahead was actually recommended to us by another tattoo place that had already filled their spots for the evening. That says something when other tattoo places recommend a place. Needless to say I was nervous about the entire process. We already had an idea of what she was getting (a saying written in her dads handwriting). Jonny Lashley made it happen and was great. He was completely relaxed and was like 'yep we can do it' He worked with her to be sure it was all the right size and the right location and in line the way she wanted. He never rushed her. If and when she gets another she will go back and we are currently working with Jonny on a design for my husband that 'plays' of my daughter' s tattoo. read more

I came in on a Tuesday with a very small design and they said I could be a walk in and that I did not need to make an appointment. I came back on a Friday and they said I needed to have the tattoo redrawn. And that it would take longer than the projected time. Not only that I put my name down on the walk in sheet and was reassured that if any spots opened up we would be called. So I came back on Sunday after no phone calls and a bachelorette party had come in just before me and they got all of there tattoos done by one artist while the other artist sat for 45 minutes and then left the shop. Not only that I sat for another two hours just to be told that I should have made an appointment. It's as though they read from a manual because I got no other answer to my complaints. This was a horrible experience and I would not recommend this place ever. The artists where not nice and did not listen to my complaints. read more